


Second Chances

by InquiryFoxtrot



Category: Daredevil (TV), The Defenders (Marvel TV)
Genre: Alternate Ending, Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Danny Rand is a Good Bro, Gen, Hurt Matt Murdock, I Wrote This Instead of Sleeping, Matt Murdock Needs a Hug, Resurrection, so is foggy, this au has me suffering
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-08-27
Updated: 2017-09-08
Packaged: 2018-12-20 11:01:11
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 2
Words: 2,638
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11919525
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/InquiryFoxtrot/pseuds/InquiryFoxtrot
Summary: Danny had really wanted to get rid of the Black Sky (or Elektra as Matt kept calling her) even before Midland Circle happened and shit hit the fan. But now, as he was getting his ass handed to him by his ally that had somehow risen from the dead, who didn’t even remember his name, Danny wanted to personally going to make sure she never saw the light of day again.





	1. Chapter 1

The first thing Elektra notices as she regains consciousness is the dust. It's thick and suffocating and makes Elektra double over as her lungs try to eject the dirt in them. It smells of gunpowder and blood and leaves a sick taste in her mouth. It leaves a beige tint on the surroundings as it settles around her. 

****

The second thing she notices is the rubble. Blocks of dirt, steel and concrete surround her, creating a wall between her and the rest of the world. When she looks up and sees the dragon bone that creates a roof over her, keeping rubble from crushing her and probably saved her life the memories come flooding back to her. The substance. The bomb. The Defenders. Matthew...

****

Oh god Matthew. Panic flies through her and she whips around, desperately looking for his red suit, ears straining to hear his voice in the destruction.

****

And that's when Elektra notices the third thing... _him_. She rushes over, hands hovering over Matthew as he lays still in carnage, his mask cracked and his suit splattered with crimson.

****

"Oh Matthew, oh god please be okay."� She begs as she grabs his limp body, pulling it close to her. There's a steel metal rod poking out of him, his body starts to feel cold. Desperately, Elektra brings his chest to his ear, begging to hear the steady rhythm of his heartbeat, begging for it to ground her, begging that the one good thing in her life not be taken away. She's met with silence.

****

"Matthew please don't leave me,"� She whispers into his head, his usually fluffed hair matted down with dirt and sweat. "Stay Matthew, stay with me. Please stay with me. Stay stay _stay stay stay_."� A sob rips through her.

****

_ It's all my fault _ She thinks to herself as she rocks the lifeless body of the only person who's ever truly loved her.  _ He stayed below for me, he wanted to save me. _ Elektra vaguely wonders if this is how Matt felt when she died on that rooftop, heart aching, wondering where it all went wrong. Looking around at the bones surrounding her a thought sparks in the back of her head. She lifts Matt and cradles him to her chest as she looks for a way out. 

****

_ I'll save you Matthew, for once I won't let you get hurt when you don't deserve it. I'll bring you back, if it's the last thing I do. _

****

~~~

****

The only time Matthew truly looks dead is when Elektra lays him in the coffin. A wave of doubt rolls through her, maybe she shouldn't do this, maybe this isn't what Matthew would have wanted. But the feeling disappears as soon as it came at the thought of Matthew's death weighing down on her forever.

****

"You said you knew how to bring him back?"� She asks without taking her eyes off Matthew, knowing who was behind her.

****

"Yes,"� Madame Gao replies from the back of the room. "However, this is a business deal and I have a few... conditions if we are to proceed."� Elektra tenses.

****

"What if I don't agree to them, I am the Black Sky after all."� She says knowing that members of the hand all over the world would follow her without a second thought.

****

"Then I'll die peacefully and you'll never get to see your Devil again. I am one of the only people left alive who know the ritual."� She counters as Elektra swallows the lump in her throat and nods curtly.

****

"What do you want?"� She asks thickly, having unconsciously started petting Matthews hair, which was still unbearably soft. 

****

"He'll need to join the Hand of course, I can't have you bringing my enemies back from the dead."� Elektra nods, that was easy, all she had to do was rearrange some of Matt's memories. "You'll also need to give me the rest of the substance you harvested from Midland Circle." Elektra nods again, after bringing back Matthew there was enough substance for probable one more use, she could live with that.

****

"Alright, and in return you'll bring Matthew back to me?"� She whispers, squeezing his limp hand.

****

"Yes, yes, the Devil of Hell's Kitchen will be brought back to life."� The old lady sighs and relief floods through Elektra's body. 

****

"Okay, let's do it."�

****

~~~

****

Hours later, the coffin is closed and ritual reaches an end. Elektra nods to Madame Gao and the older woman leaves. Elektra only remembers bits and pieces of her resurrection but she didn't want Matt to go through it alone. 

****

The sound of stone grinding on stone pierced Elektra's ears as wet hands slide the lid of the coffin off, and all of a sudden Matthew Murdock bursts out of the Substance, dripping and coughing and he collapses on the ground. His head spins around, eyes panicked, in the dark and confused, sometimes Elektra forgot that Matthew was still blind.

****

She represses the urge to surge forward and instead approaches tentatively, slowly reaching her hand out to touch Matthew's shoulder, being careful not to panic him.

****

"It's alright Matthew,"� She says softly. "I'm here, you're okay, Elektra's here."� His face twitches at the sound of her name like he still remembers who she is.

 

"E-Elektra?"� His voice comes out as a hesitant whisper, but it's his and he's here and he's  _ alive _ . She smiles.

****

"Yes, I'm Elektra, and your name is Matthew."� She says and rubs his arm. "I'm going to keep you safe." Now it's Matthew's turn to smile and Elektra is filled with relief, this is all she wanted, for Matthew to feel safe.

****

"I'm Matthew," He repeats, like he's reminding himself. "And you are- you are going to keep me safe?" Elektra nods.

****

"Do you remember anything else Matthew?"� She asks and Matt shakes his head. "You work for the Hand." Discomfort flashes across his features, like his old life is trying to come back to him. "You work with me, we work together." She says quickly and Matt immediately relaxes.

****

"My name is Matthew, I work for the Hand."� He says back, trying to piece the little information he knew about himself together. "I-I work with you. You are- are Elektra. Elektra makes me feel safe."� Elektra nods and grabs Matthew's hand.

****

"Can you walk Matthew, do you remember how?" She asks as Matthew tries to pull himself to his feet, only to fall down again. He looks away in embarrassment. "It's okay if you don't remember, it will come back to you."� Instead she scoops him up bridal style and carries him away from the coffin, him clinging to her shirt like a lifeline, the substance that's left on him staining her clothes.

****

She carried him to the room she prepared and into the bathroom, lying him down in the bathtub. She cleans him up using a damp towel, wraps him in a robe and brings him to the bed. She lays down beside him, her arm wrapped around his waist, listening to him breathe as he slept. She knew Madame Gao would be here soon to get Matthew training, make sure he didn't remember anything.

****

And he wouldn't, Elektra made sure of it. She left his basic knowledge of the world, his instincts, his personality, his feelings for her. But everything else had been cast aside, mostly to make sure he didn't doubt his affiliation with the Hand but also so Matthew wouldn't hurt for the ones he left behind. 

****

She shifts her head and places a kiss on his back, savoring the quiet, the intimacy, savoring him. She'll never let him go again.


	2. Chapter 2

Matthew Murdock is a self sacrificing asshole. At least, that’s what Jessica Jones tells herself anytime anyone mentions him. Matthew Murdock is a selfless yet somehow still completely selfish, full of catholic guilt, self sacrificing asshole and Jessica really _really_ misses him.

 

She almost liked him in the end. He was funny, he could be kind if he wanted to be, and he was a damn good lawyer. She bonded with Matt a lot, during the week she knew him, and, if she was being honest, she was pretty glad she had a friend who was more fucked up than she was. Then the shithead goes and offs himself so yeah, Matthew Murdock is an asshole.

 

In her defense, she’s definitely handling it better than she thought she would, or at least better than Danny. She was working and she was only drinking a little more than she usually did (okay maybe a lot more but at least she was being productive.) She could tell the smell of whiskey was so thick that if Matt was still here Jessica bets he would get drunk just by being around her.

 

Still, she's doing better than Danny so you've got to give her props for that. Not that she talks to Danny to know, that kid is _insufferable_. But she talks to Luke, and Luke talks to Claire, who talks to Colleen, who talks to the brat himself who apparently is worse at coping than Jessica is. And that's saying something.

 

But Jessica doesn't have time to worry about Danny Phantom or whatever he calls himself because Matt's service is on a Thursday and that makes Jessica want to cry. She hates Thursdays, the day makes her blood boil and her throat close because by the time Thursday comes around she's exhausted, clients seen that much more unbearable and people give her weird looks when she drinks on a Thursday. All in all, she hates Thursday and doesn't need another reason to hate it, and she definitely doesn't want to stain Matt's memory with a service on Thursday. But here she is, sitting in the second pew of a church she’s never heard of listening to some asshole talk about another asshole.

 

It’s a small service, only people who knew both his identities, Matthew’s priest speaks, so does his friend (Foggy? She doesn’t know and she’s too drunk to care.) She can’t help but think that Matt deserved so much more. As the service drags Jessica combs through the memories trying to figure out where it all went wrong. She figures it’s when the four of them are holed up in that Chinese restaurant and they’re struggling to survive but all Jessica was thinking about was how Matt could somehow hear neon. She was going to ask him, when this all died down, she really was, but now-

 

That’s all it takes for her to snap, she jumps up, her hands slamming on the pew with a bang and storms out of the church to the nearest bar and orders the hardest whiskey they’ve got because hey, alcohol is better than tears.

 

Claire finds her twenty minutes later, completely wasted and struggling to hold back tears in front of a very exasperated, yet concerned, bartender.

 

“I got it from here,” She says to the bartender and lifts Jessica up by her shoulders and drags her out of the bar. Jessica whines in protest. “I think you’ve had too much tonight.” She says gently and her tone of voice is enough to send tears down her cheeks because Claire’s holding it together for her and Jessica doesn’t deserve that.

 

The stumble back to Jessica’s apartment is quiet, except for the occasional sniffs Jessica let’s out. Her door isn’t locked, not to Claire’s surprise, so Claire drags Jessica inside and tosses her on her bed.

 

“Okay, I’m not going to bother with the ‘Are you okay?” bullshit because I know you aren’t,” She starts, sitting across from Jessica. “So just tell me, what’s wrong?”

 

Jessica doesn’t know why she does it, maybe it’s the alcohol, maybe she’s finally losing it but either way, some unholy demon possesses her and she actually tells her the truth. Well, her drunken version of the truth.

 

“He never told me how he heard neon and it’s Thursday and Matt’s an _asshole_ ,” Jessica chokes out and finally breaks, sobs racking through her body. Claire seemed to understand, wrapping her arms around her. She rubbed Jess’s back soothingly while Jess cried.

 

“I knew him,” Claire said after a while and Jessica sniffed.

 

“We all did, to an extent anyway,” She pulled herself up and wiped her eyes. She glanced at the tear stain on Claire’s shoulder. “Sorry about that.” She pointed to the stain.

 

“No problem. But I knew him before I met you, or Danny or even Luke.” Claire said softly and Jessica straightened, well this is new. “He was the first… enhanced person I met. Practically gave me my ‘Vigilante Nurse’ title.” She laughed humorlessly.

 

“Well, you know what they say, you never forget your first.” Jessica attempted to joke and Claire gave her a humorless snort.

 

“You got that right, you want to know how I met him?” She asked, a faraway look in her eyes. “He was bleeding half to death in my dumpster, almost died in my living room, the prick.” Jessica smiled dryly, that had Matt written all over it. A long silence fell over them, a couple tears spilling over Jessica’s cheeks as she struggled to rein them in.

 

“Why are you still here?” Jessica asked finally and Claire perked up. “You could’ve dropped me home and left, or, better yet, you could’ve not come for me at all. So why are you still here? Watching me cry over a guy I barely knew.” Claire waits a moment before responding.

 

“I don’t want you to grieve alone.” She says slowly, still gathering her thoughts. “This hell is bad enough, it’s even worse if you don’t have anyone, and, if I’m being honest, I don’t want to be alone either.”

 

“But you have Luke,” Jess points out.

 

“He doesn’t understand, he didn’t know Matt and he doesn’t know that I knew him,” Claire explains, getting up and grabbing a bottle of whiskey that was on the ground. “And I can’t bother Karen and Foggy, they were Matt’s friends, his real friends and I don’t want to be a reminder of what killed him, Danny is shit at coping but at least he has Colleen so I guess that leaves me with you.”

 

“So I’m a last resort… thanks,” Jess says dryly and Claire cracks a smile.

 

“You know what I mean, anyway, you want to keep wallowing or do you want to drink the night away and hope this all disappears in the morning?” Claire takes a swig from the bottle.

 

“I’ll go with the latter.” Jess replies grabbing the bottle from her. They tell each other stories, they drink, they cry and in the morning, when Claire wakes up with an awful hangover, she doesn’t regret it too much because they have each other.

 

~~~

 

Elektra silently watches Matt train from a balcony above the main floor. He has the men pinned in seconds, their bones broken and egos bruised. He still won't kill them, which Madame Gao is upset about but Elektra is secretly happy about, it’s another piece of Matt that hasn’t been lost and her heart has ached enough for the parts that were. And, speak of the devil, Gao approaches her from behind.

 

“The Devil is making great progress, he will be ready for field missions within a week at this rate.” She says in approval and Elektra nods, it seems like his fighting skill has increased since his resurrection, he can even hold his own against Elektra now.

 

“Where will he be going?” She asks, she’ll go with him if he travels too far.

 

“For now, he’ll stay right here,” Gao replies, her hands gripping her cane tightly and her eyes cold. “There is a certain someone, or shall I say _group_ of someones, in Hell’s Kitchen that I want to send a message to.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> honestly, Claire getting the interactions I wish she had in defenders is like an entire subplot to this in all honesty

**Author's Note:**

> Do I have other fics that need more attention that this? God yes  
> Am I actually going to write them or is this new hyperfixation going to consume me? Mm, probably the latter. Enjoy


End file.
